1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to network security and, more particularly, to attestation of properties of a remote system.
2. Description of the Background Art
A major problem faced when devising a secure communications system is determining whether an untrusted system should be trusted. Additionally, if the untrusted system simply sends information that can be reliably used to determine the untrusted system's trustworthiness, the recipient of this information, including any intermediary systems listening to the communications system, could use this information to impersonate the untrusted system.
Accordingly, what is desired is a means by which the untrusted system can attest to particular characteristics while providing a potential attacker zero reusable knowledge.